Trump vows tariffs to come for Canada over wildfire smoke that has drifted to U.S.

U.S. President ‌Donald ​Trump on Friday ​vowed to impose tariffs ​on Canada in ‌retaliation for smoke from wildfires that ‌has drifted ​into the United States.

“We’re going to put a big tariff on Canada because of the smoke,” Trump told reporters, when speaking in the Oval Office at the White House on Friday afternoon, following an announcement relating to American nuclear energy.

Trump, who had already threatened to increase tariffs on Canada for smoke emanating from wildfires, did not provide any detail on his latest tariff threat.

In the Oval Office, Trump also said he had “told Canada they have to do something about it,” which he’d also previously stated doing.

Trump isn’t the only U.S. lawmaker who has criticized Canada over the fallout from wildfires this summer. A handful of members of the U.S. Congress wrote to Prime Minister Mark Carney, accusing Canada of failing to conduct adequate forest maintenance to reduce the risk of wildfires.

Trump is an avowed fan of tariffs. His administration has favoured the use of tariffs during his second presidency — even after running into court-related setbacks in terms of how the U.S. government is able to wield them.

Earlier this week, Trump separately threatened to impose 50 per cent tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of Canadian goods effective Aug. 19.

Carney has said Ottawa will consider retaliatory measures if the federal government is unable to reach a deal with the Americans before Trump’s threatened tariffs come into effect.